PC® Lawn & Garden – 2016 Innovations

In time for the 2016 gardening season, the PC® team is introducing some of their new and exclusive products, available at PC® Garden Centres across Canada.

NEW & EXCLUSIVE PRODUCTS

Framberry/ Pineberry/ Strawberry (3 pack) (Note: this pack is not branded PC)
This cool three-pack of Framberry, Pineberry and Strawberry is sure to please the sweet tooth in any gardener. This collection contains three plants (one of each variety).

Photo Credit: PC

Framberry – It may look like a strawberry, but this mouth-watering berry boasts a delicious, sweet raspberry flavour. Harvest the juicy berries from mid-July to mid-August and enjoy them fresh from the plant, with whip cream, yogurt or ice cream.

Pineberry – An unusual variety producing good crops of attractive white fruits with red seeds (which birds tend not to eat as they think they’re not ripe!). Ready to harvest in July, the succulent berries boast a sweet pineapple-like flavour, and are delicious straight from the plant or in a tasty summer fruit salad.

Strawberry Mignonette – The main purpose of this plant is to pollinate the unique new Framberry and Pineberry, but it also produces small, delicious berries that you can harvest from July to late-August.

PC® Allium ‘Medusa’
This ornamental onion has snaky, twisty leaves that will remind you of the snake hair from the Medusa legend. ‘Medusa’ forms a low mound of grey-green, narrow foliage with leaves that twist slightly at the end. The nodding buds look like snakes at the tips of the stems before they straighten to form rounded clusters of light amethyst-purple flowers. Butterflies and honeybees adore the flowers, but deer and rabbits steer clear of this perennial beauty.

Photo Credit: PC

PC® Heucherella ‘Metallic Madness’
This foamy bell has metallic grey-pewter leaves and veining with a slight silver overlay. The newest leaves emerge a soft wine colour immediately lightening to lovely metallic hues. With burgundy-pink undersides ‘Metallic Madness’ works well both in the landscape and in patio containers. The medium to small dense leaves maintain a consistent compact shape all year round Rose coloured stems with soft white flowers appear in summer but the foliage is what makes this variety so fantastic.

Photo Credit: PC

PC® Gigantico Dahlia Starsister Rose & White

A striking array of colours to revitalize your day, the Dahlia Starsister Rose and White will bloom and bloom throughout your spring and summer. It laughs at the heat, loves the sun and will thrive with summer showers. Harvest beautiful cut flowers from Dahlia Starsister Rose and White to beautify your home, and the plant will keep on blooming again and again.

Photo Credit: PC

PC® Fortunia Star Lavender

A gentle wash of lavender hues sets the mood for relaxation on your patio or in your garden. This delicate coloured petunia enjoys the sun, will beautify window boxes or planters on its own or with friends. Pastels are back, and what a better way for your outdoor space to be “in style”. Fortunia Star Lavender is strong, will easily bloom in planters with mounds of intriguing flowers and adds star power to any patio or garden setting.

PC® Super Gigantico Confetti Garden Mixes

Artfully selected plants to grow beautifully together. Each combination creates its own flowering paradise that is perfect for all garden settings. Confetti Garden is pre-planned and pre-planted for your enjoyment: easy because the plants have already been tested to play well together, and trendy because the colour and texture are created with today’s style in mind. From Tone on Tone to Wild and Crazy, these colour combinations are the perfect décor for your outdoor space.
Colour combinations for this year include:
• Cayenne
• Peppermint Swirl
• Shocking Touch
• Purple Halo

NEW PRODUCTS

PC® Bounce Impatiens

The resilient flower, perfect for shade or even the sun, Bounce Impatiens can be planted in shade and it will grow and flower all summer long. They also have proven performance in the sun. If they wilt due to lack of moisture, just add water and they “Bounce” back, which is where the name comes from.

Most important, Bounce Impatiens are resistant to downy mildew disease, which attacks the old standby for the shade: Impatiens walleriana. They are great in ground beds and containers as one plant will spread and cover an area 12 to 18 inches masses of flowers.

With summer just around the corner, it’s time to start getting garden ready. Imagining your ideal outdoor space, be it a patio, deck, backyard or terrace, is the first step in planning for a summer full of fun in the sun.

To help jump start your planning and get you in the mood to pull out your trowels and spades, I worked with President’s Choice® and it’s Garden Centres to put together a list of the biggest gardening trends for this summer. From what I’ve seen and heard lead up to 2016, these will surely be the hottest garden styles across the country.

BRIGHT BEGONIAS

Nothing says summer like brilliant colours, and again this year, gardeners are looking to have their outdoor spaces dazzle with different shades and hues. Many have already dubbed 2016 “The Year of the Begonia” as the bright perennial is winning fans across the United States and Canada. It’s not just scarlet begonias that people are talking about; new varieties of Begonia are loaded with colours and bred to enjoy the sun and shade. They’re prefect to liven up any area of your garden.

COLOUR ME GREEN

Forget the white picket fence; the ever growing trend of backyard colour is moving beyond the garden and into backyard structures. Fences and sheds are trending towards darker colours like navies, blacks and dark forest greens. If you’re planning on doing some outdoor building, or giving the fence a quick coat of paint, think about these colours that are sure to give your outdoor space a modern feel.

RELAX AND LET THE PLANTS DO THE WORK

Have you always wanted to start gardening but can’t seem to keep your houseplants alive? Fear not, more and more new gardeners are learning that you don’t have to spend hours a day to impress your backyard guests. Try low maintenance annuals like PC® Gigantico Selosia Dragon’s Breath or PC® Coleus Flame Thrower Spiced Curry, to spice up your planters. Or, if you love to garden but aren’t sure about plant arrangement, try pre-planted garden mixes. It’ll take the guess work out of gardening but still result in planters and baskets that are perfectly colour coordinated.

BEES PLEASE

If you’re looking for a trend that supports pollinators like bees and butterflies, you’re not alone. More and more Canadians are concerned about the declining populations of pollinators and want to do something to help. PC® has developed a series of perennials that these beautiful creatures love and are grown without the use of Neonicotinoids – a systemic pesticide. Not only will your garden be filled with beautiful butterfly wings but you’ll also be doing your part to help these species through tough times.

SMALL SPACES, BIG IDEAS

It’s no secret that urban Canadians are moving into smaller spaces. Downtown condo buildings are on the rise and there’s no room for a backyard when you’re living on the 40th floor. Amazingly, condo dwellers aren’t letting their high-rise spaces prevent them from enjoying beautiful potted plants. Indoor, low-maintenance tropical plants and terrace-friendly succulents can make any condo or apartment balcony really stand out.

FOOD GARDENS

Lastly, a trend that’s becoming even more of a “movement” in the past few years is growing your own food to eat. Whether its fresh herbs on the windowsill or planters & gardens filled with new and exciting varieties of exotic berries, growing your own food has never been more on trend.

Planting edibles is an exciting opportunity to learn about new and different varieties of fruits and veggies. Try PC® Framberry strawberries, a delicious strawberry that has a sweet, raspberry flavour. Or for something truly unique, how about PC® Ketchup and Fries, a unique tomato grafted onto a potato plant. Who knew that you can grow tomatoes and potatoes on the same plant? It’s just another exciting step in the world of gardening.

Comments

I’m new to gardening and just purchased the 3 pack framberry/pineberry/strawberry and will be planting them in the garden. Will these plants come back next year, or are they just good for this year? Also, read that you should cut off the blooms this year. Appreciate your advice on this. Thanks.